Wimbledon 2023: Barbara Schett – ‘Why shouldn’t we talk about our period?’

We all know and love Wimbledon for its traditions, but we were very ready for this particular implementation. The all-white policy has been extremely strict – if you had one coloured stripe on your kit, you were sent off to the locker room. That’s not the case anymore, which is fantastic, especially for women who will be on their period during the tournament.

Some women experience very heavy bleeding, which is why this is a really positive progression. As a player, you can feel extremely conscious whilst playing on your period.

I remember when I was about 21, I had a horrid experience in Prague. I was on my period and could feel I needed to go to the toilet to change my tampon, but the toilet rules meant you could only go at the end of each set. I remember standing waiting for a return, where of course your legs are spread and I literally felt that it was going to fall out, and that’s a woman’s worst nightmare. I tried speaking to the umpire, but they said I had to wait until the end of the set, and I was just so conscious; I could barely move during the points. It was the most uncomfortable thing and I felt so ashamed. I was too shy to explicitly tell the umpire I was on my period, but I’d like to think there would be more leniency now. That’s why Wimbledon relaxing its all-white policy is such an important step.

I personally struggled a lot with my period during my career, which is why I feel pretty passionate about bringing more awareness to it now. I was 14 when I got my first ever one, and it came a day before I played my first WTA tournament. I was vomiting, had unbelievable diarrhoea and intense stomach pain. I felt really uncomfortable because I had to double up on sanitary towels – I had no idea how to use tampons then. It was horrible timing, and I was really nervous about telling my coach because he was male. He was great about it and made me a hot water bottle, but it would have been nice to have had a female coach there because she could have related with me. That obviously wasn’t my coach’s fault, but I felt scared and alone at the time.

I was living at the Institute of Sport in Vienna at the time, so later on I spoke to some of the other female athletes and talking to them made my life a lot easier. I learnt how to use tampons and began to understand that my symptoms were normal. Then as I became more established on tour, I would chat about it with some of my good girlfriends, but I still think it should be more openly discussed. I loved it when Ons Jabeur mentioned it during Roland-Garros – she was on her period and wasn’t feeling that great and was just honest about it. Then also Mikaela Shiffrin in Austria last winter – she spoke about her menstrual cycle after winning her race, but it was wrongly translated as bike cycling.

So, I love that women are becoming a lot more open and they’re not afraid of what men think. Why shouldn’t we talk about our period? It’s the most natural thing on earth – ultimately, if women didn’t have their periods, there wouldn’t be any babies and humans would be gone!

They can obviously impact everyone differently. Some women can experience all the symptoms: bloating, stomach pain, headaches, difficulty concentrating, heavy bleeding. Some women bleed so much that they lose a lot of iron and feel weak with no energy. Some women are less affected than others, whereas some could spend days in bed. For me, I would never feel great for a couple of days. I always felt bloated with unbelievable headaches, and especially as a tennis player, you’re in action pretty much every week for 11 months of the year. It’s so tough because you know you just have to somehow push through the pain. The hormones impact on your emotions as well, so you can feel a lot more vulnerable. It’s a huge challenge, especially if you peak at a certain time but then suddenly have your period.

When I was 15, I was prescribed the pill just so I could avoid getting my period around the Grand Slam by double-backing it. That’s not the healthiest thing to do, but it meant I knew I wouldn’t have to deal with any issues so I could focus purely on my tennis. I did that a few times but not very often because I remember the doctor said it wasn’t great, so after that I just tried to take it day by day, and you get to know your body a little better when you get older. My tactic was taking tablets especially targeted for period pain – without those painkillers, I definitely couldn’t have played.

Support for players has hopefully evolved since then. It’s no secret that the majority of coaches on the WTA Tour are male, but I think men now – especially younger men – have a completely different understanding compared to our fathers or grandfathers. So, it’s getting better, but it needs to continue progressing.

If it’s not happening already, I would love to see more learning implemented in coaches’ courses, or there could be coaches’ meetings at each Grand Slam where they can learn the latest developments and discover how to work with a player when they’re on their period – how to talk to her, make her feel better and understand her mood and hormones.

The more it’s spoken about – whether it’s amongst coaches, players or the media – the more it’s normalised and that will be so beneficial for all the young athletes out there who want to be the best of the best. Wimbledon introducing the coloured under-shorts has really helped open up the conversation, so let’s keep on heading in the right direction.

– – –

Barbara Schett will be reporting on all the action and news at SW19 throughout The Championships at Wimbledon.